Every step in human progress, from the first feeble stirrings in the abyss of time, has been opposed by the great majority of men. Every valuable thing that has been added to the store of man's possessions has been derided by them when it was new, and destroyed by them when they had the power. They have fought every new truth ever heard of, and they have killed every truth-seeker who got into their hands.
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It has often been said that power corrupts. But it is perhaps equally important to realize that weakness, too, corrupts. read more
It has often been said that power corrupts. But it is perhaps equally important to realize that weakness, too, corrupts. Power corrupts the few, while weakness corrupts the many. Hatred, malice, rudeness, intolerance, and suspicion are the faults of weakness. The resentment of the weak does not spring from any injustice done to them but from their sense of inadequacy and impotence. We cannot win the weak by sharing our wealth with them. They feel our generosity as oppression.
Of all sexual aberrations, perhaps the most peculiar is chastity.
Of all sexual aberrations, perhaps the most peculiar is chastity.
He that will not apply new remedies must expect new evils; for time is the greatest innovator.
He that will not apply new remedies must expect new evils; for time is the greatest innovator.
...the conviction persists - though history has shown it to be a hallucination - that all the questions that the read more
...the conviction persists - though history has shown it to be a hallucination - that all the questions that the human mind has asked are questions that can be answered in terms of the alternatives that the questions themselves present. But in fact intellectual progress usually occurs through sheer abandonment of questions together with both of the alternatives they assume - an abandonment that results from their decreasing vitality and change of urgent interest. We do not solve them: we get over them. Old questions are solved by disappearing, evaporating, while new questions corresponding to the changed attitude of endeavor and preference take their place.
Veracity is the heart of morality.
Veracity is the heart of morality.
You've got to watch your mind all the time or you'll awaken and find a strange picture on your press.
You've got to watch your mind all the time or you'll awaken and find a strange picture on your press.
Informal relationships are not mere minor interstitial supplements to the major institutions of society. These informal relationships not only include read more
Informal relationships are not mere minor interstitial supplements to the major institutions of society. These informal relationships not only include important decision-making processes, such as the family, but also produce much of the background social capital without which the other major institutions of society could not function nearly as effectively as they do.
The world's greatest thinkers have often been amateurs; for high thinking is the outcome of fine and independent living, and read more
The world's greatest thinkers have often been amateurs; for high thinking is the outcome of fine and independent living, and for that a professional chair offers no special opportunities.
Civilization is an enormous device for economizing knowledge,.
Civilization is an enormous device for economizing knowledge,.
